I have watched TAR but not recently, so plz excuse the dumb questions...I knew what a NEL was, just didn't recognize the abbreviation....TYSM

The speed bump is just an extra task that the team must perform as a penalty for being the last team to arrive on the previous leg.

If you watched earlier seasons, you know that they used to take away a team's belongings and cash as the NEL penalty. But having Americans beg for cash overseas wasn't a very good image, so they developed other penalties for the NEL teams.

In the most recent episode, Ericka and Brian had to go to that bar and mix an Absinthe drink and drink it as their speed bump.

It would be nice if they had done away with the begging, but no such luck. Teams can still beg, but not in U.S. airports and not where a country prohibits it. Many teams beg on airplanes and in foreign airports (almost all the ones used in each Amazing Race) in order to build up a strategic financial reserve that can be used for encouraging taxi drivers to go above the speed limit, for hiring taxis to follow when self-driving, for extra snacks or whatever. The fact that there is no requirement to do so after finishing last in an NEL makes the need for begging a little less but does not by any means eliminate it.

I've had a question for quite a while actually, so I guess now is as good a time as ever to ask it

When the teams are driving themselves, are they set to any rules, like staying under a certain speed limit? I thought I remembered quite a while ago that one team was given a penalty for something like that.

Supposedly yes, but there is some room here as we see with teams getting speeding tickets. I think if they are REALLY meant to follow the speed limit, they gey that in the extra info. But sometimes it is their choice. The cameramen are authorized to make them slow down if at any point they fele unsafe, however.

Logged

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I have a question about the rest period between legs. I was always under the assumption that they rest time was always 12 hours, but I've now learned that it can be up to 36 hours. Are teams able to go out and explore the area on their own or must they stay at the pit stop for the duration of the rest?

I've had a question for quite a while actually, so I guess now is as good a time as ever to ask it

When the teams are driving themselves, are they set to any rules, like staying under a certain speed limit? I thought I remembered quite a while ago that one team was given a penalty for something like that.

The way they seem to do it (to me, anyway) is that they can speed, but they get a penalty if they get busted for it.

However, in certain situations, (Like in All-stars, and I suspect Season 7) they enforce strict speed limits for safety reasons.

I have a question about the rest period between legs. I was always under the assumption that they rest time was always 12 hours, but I've now learned that it can be up to 36 hours. Are teams able to go out and explore the area on their own or must they stay at the pit stop for the duration of the rest?

Does CBS give out a Map with the routes the teams went on before the season starts? When did they start doing this? I thought it was better if it was left a mystery until the season began? And a lot more fun for sites like this one to figure it out.